


Lessons

by Marslion, NekoNoKitiKiti



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends: Thrawn Trilogy - Timothy Zahn, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Armitage Hux Has Issues, Armitage Hux could be better, But Not Too Seriously, Crack Treated Seriously, Fusion of Star Wars Legends and Disney Canon, Gen, Kylo Ren Has Issues, Kylo Ren grows as a person, Kylo becomes less of an ass, M/M, Post- Star wars legends Thrawn trilogy, Post-Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo Lives, Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo Needs a Hug, Ysalamiri (Star Wars)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-29
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:00:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27772651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marslion/pseuds/Marslion, https://archiveofourown.org/users/NekoNoKitiKiti/pseuds/NekoNoKitiKiti
Summary: After a fight, Kylo Ren and Hux are sent to the Imperial star destroyer Chimera! Where they meet the Grand Admiral Thrawn who has been tasked by the Supreme Leader to make both of them decent commanders.This was a crackfic that gained a plot! This story is about Kylo Ren and Hux learning under the wing of Thrawn
Relationships: Armitage Hux & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Armitage Hux & Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo, Gilad Pellaeon/Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo, Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Ysalamiri - Relationship
Comments: 6
Kudos: 17





	1. Boarding

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!! this started as a silly idea and grew quite a bit, I hope you stick around for this crazy roller coaster of a fic where Thrawn ends up with kids he didn't ask for! Also a thing of note, this is set twenty-two or so years after return of the jedi
> 
> Beta'd by https://archiveofourown.org/users/NekoNoKitiKiti

Thrawn stood calmly as he watched the shuttle slowly land, the Chimeras crew stood in rows as honor guard. It was rare for the higher ranks of the First Order to take any interest in the old Imperial Star Destroyer, they preferred their more recent technological horrors with their larger guns and size; Thrawn found such things unnecessary when the Chimera just worked.

The shuttle’s door slowly lowered and Thrawn stood slightly taller; he was a Grand Admiral after all and his age held little sway over his posture. Two humans walked down the ramp, one was dressed in an officer’s uniform whereas the other wore black robes and a black helmet that was reminiscent of the late Darth Vader. Thrawn felt himself frown slightly at that.

“Welcome Gentlemen, this is the ISD Chimera. I am Grand Admiral Thrawn.” Thrawn didn’t like shaking hands, but he offered nonetheless; only one accepted it.

The officer was the one who shook his hand. “I am General Armitage Hux. It is a pleasure sir,” the man said confidently. Thrawn was unsure if he meant it but decided not to comment.

Thrawn folded his hands behind his back, and gestured for the two to follow him. “I have received orders from the Supreme Leader to put you to work aboard my ship. I will be evaluating you two through a series of tasks to see what role would suit you both best,” he explained with ease, making note to keep them both within view.

Hux let out an amused, almost condescending huff, “Forgive me sir, but I am a General. I’m quite aware of what role suits me best; where’s the bridge?” 

Thrawn sighed quietly within his own mind. “General, this is my ship, I think I will decide where you best fit,” he stated slowly, as if speaking to a child, his hands only slightly tightening around each other.

The redhead frowned, clearly confused. “With all due respect Admiral, I am best suited for a command post,” Hux tried again.

Thrawn raised an eyebrow at the man, someone refusing orders was unfortunately common in Thrawn’s life; didn’t change the fact that it was irritating when it happened. “I will consider it if you prove your case, but until then you will do as I say, and I do believe it is Grand Admiral.” 

Hux took great offense to this but Thrawn found he no longer wanted to pay attention to such a display; he turned his head to look at the other. “I don’t believe you ever introduced yourself.”

The helmet turned to face him. Now that Thrawn was able to get a closer look at the being, he saw the lightsaber hanging at their hip and was able to take note of their height and build better.

“I am Kylo Ren, and I will be taking command of the ship,” the modulated voice growled out.

Both of Thrawn’s eyebrows shot up at this; even Vader respected his command and only sometimes stepped on his toes, this Kylo Ren lacked all forms of respect for a high ranking officer and didn’t even bother to state their rank. “Is that so? Might I ask your rank,” Thrawn knew his voice sounded calm and collected but the words felt like they were said through gritted teeth.

“I don’t possess a rank, I am to be taking command of the ship,” The being that Thrawn now recognized as a young boy said these words as if they made complete sense.

A small grin graced Thrawn's lip’s now despite the boy's disrespect. “I see. Well I hate to be the one to inform you, but if you do not have a rank then you cannot command a ship, and you most certainly cannot take command from a Grand Admiral. I think we will put you at the rank of an Ensign, and if you wish to have a command post like your friend here you best do well at whatever post I see fit to put you at.” Thrawn stopped and faced the younger man when he said all of this, the way the boy's facial heat changed under his mask amused Thrawn.

The boy straightened up a bit and rested his hand by his odd-looking lightsaber, “I don’t think you understand, I will be taking command,” he growled out again as if it would change Thrawn’s answer.

Thrawn couldn’t help but smile now in amusement. “Threats don’t work on me, boy. For you see, I served with Lord Vader himself during the height of the Empire. Your little toy and words do not scare me.” 

Kylo Ren grabbed the lightsaber and ignited it, “You will find my threats to be quite real.” The red blade came to rest by Thrawn’s neck, above his right shoulder.

It was amusing how the boy thought he was in charge; the click of hundreds of blasters being activated and pointed at the young boy filled Thrawn with a sense of joy. “Now, now, everyone. Our guests are simply forgetting themselves, set the blasters to stun,” Thrawn drawled as he raised his hand to all the troopers.

The blasters clicked again and all the troopers settled around them. “Take a look around you, boy, what kind of armor do you see?”

Ren took a moment before his helmet turned slightly to look at all the white armor, “Those armors don’t look like First Order,” he said in confusion.

“Ah yes, those are Stormtrooper armor I improved myself. Every one of those men are loyal to me and me only, the moment you decide to swing this saber you will be dead before I even hit the deck,” Thrawn purred, taking a small step forward.

The boy shifted to try and avoid the crossguard beams from harming Thrawn. “The Supreme Leader sent you to me so that you can learn to lead, and to lead you need to understand your lowest of crew members. So you will start at Ensign, and you will serve as my aid,” Thrawn explained as he took a step back.

Kylo Ren looked around slowly, before putting up his lightsaber. “The Supreme Leader will not be pleased at your men for pointing blasters at me,” the boy said after a moment of hesitation.

Thrawn sighed. “The Supreme Leader will understand. The thing everyone that comes from the First Order doesn’t understand is that we are not a faction of the First Order, the First Order is a faction of us.” Thrawn turned and began making his way out of the hangar bay, “I did after all nearly destroy the Republic.”

It took a moment but soon he heard the two follow him. It was a bit of a walk to the bridge but it was a walk Thrawn was used to. “You will be provided uniforms and a station to work at. I expect you both to wear these uniforms and if you don’t, you will be put on ration duty,” he explained as he sat down in his command chair.

“Uniform? I am in uniform,” Hux grumbled in confusion.

Thrawn raised an eyebrow, “You are in a First Order Uniform, we use Imperial Uniforms.”

“Imperial uniforms are out of date,” Kylo Ren so kindly provided.

There were many times Thrawn was pleased that he didn’t have pupils like humans. This was one of such moments. He rolled his eyes. “Captain Nar, please show the new recruits where they will be staying and give them their uniforms. I will have rank plaques given to them once they are done dressing,” he called to the person.

The woman who marched over was from Naboo; Thrawn found her to be one of the few that would work best for these two. She was gentle but commanding; she was strict and would follow his orders to the letter. “Of course Grand Admiral. Come along with you two!” Her voice was crisp and soft, yet carried well at that last bit.

Hux looked as if he had something to say, but was led off by Nar before he had the chance. Thrawn couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief once they had left. It seemed even after all these years he was being punished for his failed attempt to bring the Republic down; he wondered when it would end. 

A gentle nudge to his hand drew him out of his thoughts. It was rare that Thrawn flinched but the cold nose that touched him sparked such a reaction. “Ah, hello, Little One,” he said after looking down to find the yellow furred ysalamiri.

They tilted their head and stared up at him with their black eyes. “Those were the new recruits, what did you think?” He asked them uselessly as he stroked their head. “I don’t much care for them, they're just like all the rest.”

They crawled into his lap and settled down. “Well, I suppose we will have to whip them into shape.” He sighed as he scratched behind their ear, “How about a snack, hmm, Little One?” 

The ysalamiri cared little about what he said, it did, after all, not really need to eat. But that was fine, the snack was for Thrawn in the end. “Captain Pellaeon?” Thrawn called.

The gray-haired man marched over quickly, giving a small bow as he came to a stop by Thrawn’s chair. “Yes, Admiral?,” he asked softly.

“I think I shall be taking a brief walk. You have the bridge,” Thrawn said easily; the other nodded sharply and Thrawn stood and walked off the bridge. He knew that he was going to need all the time he could get away from the bridge. Soon he would have very little time to be away from the new recruits.

* * *

Kylo frowned deeply at the uniform he had been provided, the gray fabric of the Imperial navy looked rough and thick. He didn’t want to dress in the uniform; his robes and helmet were of his own creation and he didn’t plan on parting with them.

“This collar is awful,” Hux grumbled as he dressed behind him. The room they had been shown was one of the barracks. It wasn’t common during the Empire to put officers in what were Stormtrooper barracks, but it seemed the blue-skinned Grand Admiral cared very little about what was common.

Kylo didn’t plan to be staying in a barracks with several idiots, and he most certainly wasn’t going to be staying in one with Hux. He set down the uniform and turned to march out the door. He intended to tell the Grand Admiral that he wanted to be transferred to a private room.

But he was stopped by an arm snapping into his abdomen. “Where do you think you’re going, recruit? You’re not in uniform,” Captain Nar said from where she stood by the door. This woman was tall and clearly aimed lower than was needed; a smirk was on her dark face as well.

“I’m going to speak with the Grand Admiral,” Kylo grumbled out from behind his mask.

Captain Nar let out a snort. “Not out of uniform you are. The Grand Admiral gave you orders, so suck it up, buttercup, and put on the uniform,” the woman all but cheered before lightly pushing him back into the room.

Kylo frowned deeply before turning and marching back over to the uniform. “Can I have somewhere private to change?” He asked over his shoulder.

The woman burst into laughter for a moment. “I’m sorry, sweetheart, but this is the Imperial Navy, you’re going to have to get used to dressing in front of others. But if you really need somewhere, there's a fresher over there.”

He gathered the uniform and went in to get dressed; the fresher was small and was clearly meant for the entire barrack to use, no doubt they would be the ones to clean it as well. This punishment was going to be harder than he thought. 

In the end Hux was right in saying the uniform collar was uncomfortable, and the man wasn’t just complaining for complaining’s sake; it was stiff and tight and just all-around awful, but then again the entire uniform was stiff and uncomfortable. He decided to just wear his helmet instead of the officer's hat.

He hooked his lightsaber onto the belt then marched out of the fresher, and Captain Nar immediately raised an eyebrow. “I’m sorry, buddy, but you're going to need the cap as well, the Admiral isn’t going to let you go without. It’s part of the dress code,” She said gesturing to her own hat.

“I would prefer to keep the helmet.” He tensed and clenched his fist; he didn’t want all these people to know his face.

She sighed before pushing herself off the wall. “Listen, kid, it’d be best if you try and obey the Admiral. He’s strict and seems cold, but he’s your best chance and if you're lucky he’ll take you under his wing. But pissing him off anymore wouldn’t be a good idea, not after that stunt you pulled in the hanger bay.”

Kylo frowned. “Why would I want him to take me under his wing?,” he asked.

Captain Nar let out a soft laugh. “That’s what they all ask, but most commanders from the First Order that are sent here go out being the best commanders in the fleet, and that’s all because of him.”

“You people think highly of him,” Kylo huffed out.

“Of course we do, he’s our Admiral,” She smiled softly. “We might be able to ask him if you can wear your helmet, but it would be best to do it in proper dress code.”

He sighed under the mask before turning to go back into the fresher; he could sense that there was no way to convince her to let him go out without the hat. Rage burned deep within his chest, but something stopped him from using it, something itched in the back of his mind. 

Kylo needed to meditate on this feeling; the force curled and spoke of purpose around the Grand Admiral. He thought on it as he removed his helmet. It was something the Grand Admiral had said, he knew that, but what?

He ran a hand through his messy hair and looked himself in the mirror. He was young, he knew that; he was only twenty-two and it showed. He huffed softly to himself and forced the cap onto his head.

He tucked his helmet under his arm then walked out of the fresher with his head down, his hair pooled around his face and blocked his view a little. 

Captain Nar chuckled at the sight of him. “Your hair is going to get in the way, kid, and regulations state that all with long hair needs to keep it up on this ship,” she said with an amused smile.

Kylo frowned. “I don’t have anything to keep it up with,” he muttered under his breath; this whole mess had been embarrassing.

The woman shook her head and marched up. “Hat off.” He did what she said, then she went about pulling up his hair; she worked quickly and sooner than he expected his hair was pulled up into a uniform bun.

She looked him over one last time before giving a pleased nod. “Right, you’re both up to standards, we’ll head back to the bridge and receive further orders from the Grand Admiral,” she informed them with a strict tone.

“Grand,” Hux snarked before falling into line and began marching. 

Kylo held himself high but kept his eyes low; there was still something about the Grand Admiral that he couldn’t put his finger on.

The walk to the bridge was a rather quick one, or rather, one that Kylo didn’t pay much attention to. The Chimera wasn’t much different than the ships of the First Order, it was simply a little more gray then black and a tad bit smaller. 

“Captain Pellaeon, I’ve brought the new recruits for inspection by the Admiral.” Captain Nar saluted the older man who stood by the command chair, which was curiously empty.

“Ah, well the Grand Admiral is busy at the moment,” Pellaeon lied.

“Meeting?” 

“Walk.”

A flare of concern came from Captain Nar. “I will inspect the new recruits,” the man gruffed with a smile that did not reach his eyes.

The older Imperial looked Hux over very carefully before he strolled over to Kylo. “How old are you?” he asked after a moment, a hint of worry and confusion coloring him within the force.

“My age is on my record,” Hux stated coldly.

The man's gray brows frowned. “Is that anyway to speak to a superior?,” Pellaeon asked darkly.

“Sir, not to be rude, but I outrank you.” Hux smirked smugly.

The captain’s brows shot up. “Do you now? Tell me, recruit, what’s your rank?” 

Hux stood straighter, brimming with confidence. “I am a General of the First Order,” he cheered with that awful grin still on his face.

Strangely, instead of any defeat or confusion Pellaeon’s sense emitted an amused triumph. “Ah, is that so, General? Because it says here in your file that you are an Ensign,” the Imperial said with a grin of his own.

“What?,” Hux sputtered out.

“Oh, yes! Right here!” The Captain pointed to the rank listed on Hux’s file, which was changed from General to Ensign; it also listed that he was no longer part of the First Order, but of the Imperial navy, strange. 

Hux gaped in shock at it. “This is a mistake, I am General Hux! I am not an Ensign,” He growled out, his anger feeding into the hungry jaws of the Force.

Pellaeon shook his head and huffed out a laugh. “It appears the Admiral decided that you’re an Ensign now, best to simply accept it.”

“No, I won’t simply accept it! I demand to speak with the Grand Admiral,” Hux said coldly while pointing an angry finger at the Captain.

The man shrugged. “He is clearly not here.”

“Where is he then? Shouldn’t a commander be on the bridge?,” Hux snarled out, his rage mounting. Kylo couldn’t help but grin a little at this.

“The Admiral doesn’t need to be on the bridge every moment, he trusts the abilities of this crew and my command,” Pellaeon explained calmly, seeming a little less amused now.

Hux clenched his fist. “Nonetheless I demand to speak with him!” 

Pellaeon sighed. “Listen, the Grand Admiral is a very busy man, and I am certain he had a very good reason as to why he decided to set you to that rank,” the man tried.

“Captain, do you wish for me to escort the recruits off the bridge?” Captain Nar’s voice? cut in, clearly trying to put an end to this.

Pellaeon shook his head. “There is no need for that, Nar. You can speak with the Grand Admiral once he returns, until then you will follow orders,” the man gruffed.

Hux gave a sharp nod but his frown remained; Kylo didn’t know what the man was thinking was going to happen. It was becoming very clear that these people cared very little about how the First Order went about things. It was almost as if they lived in their own little galaxy aboard this ship.

A wave of relief floated off Captain Pellaeon within the force before he turned to face Kylo. “Do you have anything you wish to discuss?,” he asked with a small sense of dread.

“Anything I have to say is to the Grand Admiral,” Kylo said in a monotone voice; there were things he was thinking he needed to ask the Grand Admiral.

Pellaeon nodded. “Well, while we wait for the Admiral to return, I have something for you two to do.” They were both handed a datapad, “I want you two to fill these out, they will be the datapads that you will be working on! You will also be given your rank plaques and comms when the Grand Admiral returns.”

Kylo frowned at the user interface; at least the datapads were up to date. “Do you have an estimate when the Admiral will be back?,” he asked, looking up at the gray-haired officer.

Pellaeon looked up in thought. “The Admiral usually is back within an hour to thirty minutes if all goes well, if he is not back within that time it is likely he has returned to his quarters.”

Kylo nodded before moving to stand to the side and began to work on his datapad. There was still an itch at the back of his mind that he didn’t understand, and it surrounded the strange blue-skinned Grand Admiral.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well hello! Here's chapter two of this interesting mess that I created with my lovely Co-creator Neko! This was rather enjoyable to write and I hope you all enjoy reading it, and please comment! I enjoy hearing everyone's thoughts.
> 
> Now I'm just going to say it here right now, I don't dislike any of the characters in this fic! their behavior is the way it is so that they can grow as the fic goes along!
> 
> Now Neko was the beta for this chapter as well so please do check them out and send love their way for putting up with the chaos that is my writing! https://archiveofourown.org/users/NekoNoKitiKiti

Thrawn blinked his eyes to try and clear his mind; a familiar fog that was clouding it more and more had settled over his thoughts. It choked and hid memories that he tried to call up; he didn’t even remember why he was in this hall.

He shook his head to dispel it further when he swore he heard the soft scrape of barely present footsteps; ice-cold panic clawed into the fog and he jerked his head to look down the hall.

It was empty; fear crept up his spine. “Did you hear something Little one?,” he asked the furry lizard that was perched on his shoulders. It was useless, he knew, but it calmed him enough for him to walk around the corner and press himself up against a wall and rest his hand on his blaster.

A deep ache settled into his chest and back as he strained to listen. By all accounts, there shouldn’t be anyone following him, not anymore, but the feeling of intelligent eyes watching him made the chill in his hands further.

Seconds passed with the only sound being his own cold heart that barely beat; he swallowed heavily before peeking his head around the corner. Empty again.

Thrawn huffed out a sigh; of course, it was nothing. He turned, expecting to see nothing but the continued hallway, only to stare into the black intelligent eyes of an all too familiar predator; his breathing quickened and he reached to pull out his blaster.

But when he pulled it out of its holster and blinked, the predator was gone; a gasp escaped his lips as his mind processed this. They were gone, they had never been there in the first place.

His hand shook as he slid his blaster back; he couldn’t convince himself to look away from where they had stood. Static rang in his ears and his breathing was far quicker than was safe; he raised his shaking hand to cover his mouth.

Thrawn knew it was impossible for them to be there; they were dead, he had witnessed it himself. But he was seeing them more and more. Every time the fog came the ghost came as well.

The pain in the middle of his chest and back grew enough to bring tears to his glowing red eyes; it was unbearable. 

He could feel the sharp slide of a knife and found himself choking on air; the taste of his own blood overwhelmed him and he could have sworn he heard those final words whispered into his ears.  _ “We have been revenged.” _

Thrawn flinched when the soft feel of fur interrupted his panic, the four black eyes of his ysalamiri stared up at him. “Ah-,” he started, his breathing still fast, “-Little one, do you need something?”

If ysalamiri had eyebrows, he was certain that the little one would have raised one. “What were we doing now?,” he asked softly, the loud roar of fear quieting a bit as he turned his attention fully to the yellow furred lizard.

He raked his brain in desperation; it kept attempting to drift to the black glassy eyes of the predator but he was the Grand Admiral Thrawn, what use would he be if he couldn’t control his own mind.

“Ah! A snack,” he said in fake triumph. The ache in his body still haunted him, but he refused to let it affect him. “Let’s go then, Little one.”

Thrawn ran a shaking hand through his hair and pushed himself off the wall. A snack, a simple task really. And once that’s done he will return to the bridge, he had new recruits to handle anyways. It did everyone very little standing in the halls seeing ghosts.

* * *

Thrawn came marching onto the bridge an hour after he left: he held a ration bar in one hand and was gently stroking a strange yellow furred lizard. Hux decided to waste very little time and moved to intercept the man as he walked to his command chair. “Grand Admiral, I need to speak to you,” he barked out with thinly hidden displeasure.

A blue-black eyebrow was raised. “You are speaking to me now,” Thrawn drawled with the same cool tone he used for almost everything.

Kylo could sense Hux’s face twitch. “I am here to ask why I have been demoted down to Ensign, I am a General of the First Order.”

The Grand Admiral stared blankly at Hux with his glowing red eyes; there wasn’t so much as a twitch on the mask the man claimed to his face. After a moment of silence, the man decided to speak. “You have not served in the Imperial Navy, so you are starting at the bottom as everyone else has,” Thrawn explained blandly.

“The Imperial Navy has been disbanded and reformed into the First Order,” Hux snarked.

A small, thin frown graced Thrawn's lips. “You are quite incorrect in that assumption, the Imperial Navy is still being run by me, we simply don’t partake in First Order business. Who do you think keeps the First Order running?” 

It was Hux’s turn to frown. “We are kept running by the Supreme Council,” he stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

“And who do you think keeps the Supreme Council in check? I am one of the last Grand Admirals from the time of the Empire, many of the commanders of your ships and army have been sent to me. I have helped birth the very Order you serve, I have served the Emperor, I fought alongside Lord Vader himself, and I have the ear of every member on your Supreme Council, and I have seen fit to make you an Ensign,“ the blue-skinned man explained after a small huff of laughter.

Kylo couldn’t help but raise his head and stare in awe at Thrawn. There it was, the reason for the itch, the man had worked with Vader! Kylo reached out to try and feel around the man’s mind, interested to rip the information he desired free, only to find that he couldn’t feel it.

Kylo’s confusion swirled through the force; why couldn’t he sense the Grand Admiral within the force? “It’s impossible for one man to hold the ear of every council member! Especially a non-human,” Hux spat.

But Kylo was no longer focused on the offended General; no, his attention was on the strange yellow furred lizard creature that stared at him with its four eyes. “I mentored half of those people, and if I didn’t train them, we worked together,” Thrawn said with a hint of annoyance in his voice; his hand even tightened around the forgotten ration bar.

Hux let out a bitter mocking laugh, “You expect me to believe that a forgotten alien Grand Admiral from a forgotten Empire mentored the Supreme Council; you are far more amusing than I originally expected.”

The entire bridge fell quiet. Kylo was certain that most everyone was holding their breath in shocked disbelief at what was just said. 

A low hiss came from the yellow furred lizard as Thrawn slowly extracted it from his shoulder; a line had appeared in between his eyebrows that frowned above his eyes that glittered and his mouth was a thin line.

“You will be given one chance to take back your words, Ensign,” the Grand Admiral muttered as he handed the lizard and the ration bar to Captain Pellaeon, the latter of which stood in pure shock.

Hux huffed amused, “Or what Grand Admiral? I am a General and you are a relic.”

The tension that grew on the bridge was suffocating, every member of the crew turned from shocked to enraged; the strangest thing to Kylo, though, is none of them say a word, they simply wait.

Thrawn turned to face Hux. He stood now at his full height and tensed his shoulders; his face was hard as stone and as cold as ice, the only hint of warmth was the fiery glow of his red eyes that seemed to glitter and grow in brightness. The Grand Admiral looked far more intimidating than Kylo had originally thought; he looked far more docile with his calm and collected face and his mostly white hair, yet now he looked far younger than Kylo had assumed.

Those burning eyes seemed to burn into Hux, yet the Grand Admiral didn’t speak, he simply stared the human down. “Nothing to sa-,” Hux didn’t get to finish his sentence because of Captain Pellaeon marching over with a furry lizard and ration bar in one hand, and giving him a light slap on the back of the head with the other.

The air immediately changed back to shock; even the Grand Admiral’s red eyes widened ever so slightly. “The deepest apologies Grand Admiral; I will have him escorted off the bridge and put on kitchen duty,” the captain said, not sounding apologetic at all.

Much to Kylo’s surprise, Hux didn’t say a word as the stormtroopers removed him from the bridge; he was most likely too shocked at the wack to the head to say much.

Thrawn remained still, his face a blank mask; Kylo didn’t think the man even breathed. Captain Pellaeon subtly, gently brushed the man's arm. Kylo wouldn’t have even seen it if he wasn’t watching the Grand Admiral very carefully. 

It was at this soft touch that Thrawn breathed out a slow long breath, his shoulders and face losing the harsh lines and his age seemed to return to him. 

Thrawn briefly rolled his shoulders before taking back the strange yellow lizard; the man walked rather slowly to his chair to sit down, a strange tiredness appeared around his red eyes, the very red eyes that seemed to catch Kylo’s. “Ah, I forgot you were here,” he said with calm ease.

Kylo frowned at that. “Well, no matter, it's best to get you to work!” Thrawn moved on quickly, “Captain Nar, please take them to their station so that they may begin.”

The woman saluted before moving to lead Kylo off, but he had no intention to just walk away; he had questions now. “I would like to speak with you,” Kylo said, taking a step closer to the command chair. He needed to know more.

The blue-skinned Admiral’s lips twitched downward at this, his hand stilling on the yellow furred lizard. “Of course, I’m assuming you too are displeased with your rank,” he said slowly; his disdain could be felt even without the force.

“I have questions,” Kylo informed the man.

A blue-black eyebrow was cocked up. “Oh? And what sort of questions?,” Thrawn asked, his tone cautious.

Kylo straightened. “Did you truly work with Lord Vader?” He wasted very little time.

The second eyebrow shot up. “An interesting question,” Thrawn murmured softly, “Yes, I worked with Lord Vader many times.”

A surge of interest and excitement ran through Kylo; it was rare people spoke of Vader in the First Order, and his master would only tell him so much. “I would like to know more,” Kylo said, staring intently at the Grand Admiral.

The man watched him carefully, his eyes shimmering in interest. “How intriguing. There are many things I can say about Lord Vader, but I don’t think you're interested in just about anything. There's something you’re looking for,” Thrawn spoke with a thoughtful tone, his head tilted slightly to the side.

“I want to know everything,” Kylo demanded.

Thrawn’s face fell and hardened slightly. “Ah, I see,” he started slowly. “You’re one of those kinds of people.”

Confusion washed over Kylo. “What do you mean ‘one of those people’?,” he asked darkly.

Thrawn let out a sigh. “Lord Vader was many things. The second in command of the entire Imperial Navy and one of the most powerful men in the galaxy, and that’s all people like you see, young Ren. You don’t want to know everything about him, you just want his power,” Thrawn explained with a tone of disinterest, “I don’t feel the need to feed such an obsession.” `

Rage overwhelmed Kylo, making the Darkside whisper with thoughts of destruction. “You will tell me,” he threatened.

An almost exhausted expression briefly crossed the Grand Admiral’s face. “You should be well aware that threats don’t work, I do not fear you nor would anything you do work,” the man stated calmly.

Kylo could feel his power grow. “I don’t need a lightsaber or threats to get what I want,” he snarled before throwing his hand in the direction of Thrawn as he reached for the man’s mind in the force with intent to rip the information he wanted from it.

Yet Thrawn didn’t even flinch, there wasn’t even a change of posture. Confusion disrupted his rage; the force didn’t even seem to touch the other man. “What?,” he questioned, but couldn’t say anything further, as the strange yellow furred lizard that was perched on Thrawn’s shoulders began hissing.

A deep and amused chuckle came from the blue-skinned man. “Confused now, are we? You’ll find your use of the force won’t work here,” Thrawn said, now stroking the hissing lizard on the head.

“What have you done?,” Kylo growled out; how could this even be possible?

An eyebrow once more cocked up. “Look around the bridge for me, tell me what you see,” he grinned.

Kylo did as the Admiral said. The bridge was like any other bridge Kylo had been on, except for one thing. There were these frames made of tubes, and they all had the strange yellow furred lizards. “What are those things?,” he asked, turning back to stare at the command chair; it had the same tubes.

“Finally, a good question!,” Thrawn said in mock cheer, his voice sounding blank. “These are the Ysalamiri, and they create a bubble that prevents you from using the force.” 

Kylo could feel his eyes widen; he had never heard of such creatures. “How can they do that?” 

Thrawn’s lips thinned in disappointment. “Why ever should I tell you? You have not earned that secret,” he drawled slowly, all the while he rested his hand on the armrest that the Ysalamiri had now calmed.

The rage curled once more. “I don’t care for these secrets, Admiral,” Kylo ground out.

“And I don’t care for your tone, Ensign,” The Grand Admiral bit back.

They glared at each other for several moments, then Kylo found he couldn’t bear to stare into the piercing glowing red eyes any longer. “This is why you were sent to me, you lack respect and discipline, I intend to correct this,” Thrawn’s voice said harshly. “You will join your fellow in the kitchen.”

With a wave of Thrawn’s hand, Kylo was escorted away.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing Kylo and Hux and I hope that I did them well


End file.
